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4 —THE NELSON MAIL Wednesday, April 23, 2014
*Terms and conditions apply. Full terms and conditions available on website
106 Rutherford Street, Nelson
03 545 8032 | www.bowaterhyundai.co .nz
Bowater Hyundai
AT A GLANCE
Drivetrain: Transverse-
mounted FWD fuel injected
DOHC VTi-Tech16 valve 1498cc
four, five speed manual*
Outputs: Max 80kW at
6000rpm, 137Nm at 4750.
Performance: Max 174kmh,
0-100kmh 10.4secs,
5.8L/100km, 136g/km CO2
(Euro 5+).
Chassis: Front MacPherson
struts, rear torsion beam;
vented disc front brakes,
drums at rear; hydraulic power
assisted steering; 16 x 5.5 inch
alloy rims, 195/55 R16 tyres.
Safety: Front, side and
curtain airbags; ABS, EBA,
EBD, traction control;
electronic stability control;
tyre pressure monitor; auto
lights and wipers; rear parking
sensors.
Connectivity: Bluetooth
hands-free; iPod, USB and
Aux-in; CD, MP3, smartphone
dock.
Dimensions: L 4018mm, W
1729mm, H 1507mm, W/base
2520mm, Weight 1155kg, Fuel
45L.
Pricing: MG3 ‘Style’ manual
only $19,990. *(automatic due
by the end of 2014).
HOT: Crisp, original styling;
huge equipment level;
surprising space; nimble, well-
sorted handling; nice ride;
safety kit; sense of occasion.
NOT: No automatic yet, neat
chassis is crying out for more
power, a turbo maybe?; car is
an unknown quantity.
VERDICT: It’s difficult to see
how you could do better in
terms of kit and fun for $20k;
a surprise on many fronts
❚ Continued from page C3
Driving environment: Dark grey leather, and high
equipment levels are unexpected in a car of this price.
Engine bay: The 1.5-litre variable valve timed DOHC
16v fuel-injected unit is flexible and brisk
Chevrolet, Iveco, Skoda,
Volkswagen and Wuling.
It will please Anglophiles to
know that while MG is very
much in thrall of the
benevolence, not to mention the
sheer fiscal muscle of SAIC, the
company has a modern research
and development centre in the
UK which has more than 300
engineers and 50 designers. The
SAIC Technical Centre, is
responsible for the development
and design engineering of MG
cars worldwide, and also has a
role in the development of Roewe
products.
Which is possibly why the MG3
looks and feels so right.
The chiselled wedge-profiled
shape even has details along its
rear panels that reflect the angles
of the famous octagon badge,
though the designers are to be
congratulated for not slavishly
putting that shape all over the
car.
Sitting on standard16 inch alloy
rims, along with subtle dark grey
sills, front splitter and vestigial
hatch spoiler and covered in
electric blue paint that seems wet
it’s so glossy, the wee 3 looks a
treat.
Up front its lazy-v shaped smile
sucks on the familiar MG badge
and is flanked by tapered,
wraparound lozenge-formed
lamps, while hockey-stick shaped
LED driving lamps sit down at
valance level.
From the rear, the MG shows
its distictive ‘hip’ which is formed
from the swage that runs from
the headlights and back to the
hatch opening.
Inside, the car is belted for five
and I could sit in the rear quite
easily.
While the dash plastic is a little
hard, that’s about all that can be
said to be a tad below par in the
MG’s cabin.
Two simple round-ended panels
deal with entertainment,
connectivity and air conditioning
and you won’t need much time to
fathom it all, while at the top of
the centre console, a stowage
panel opens to expose charging
for phones and other devices and
a smartphone dock.
The steering wheel takes care
of many hands-on tasks with
phone and stereo buttons, and
with a leather skin, it looks and
feels very classy.
Leather also features on the
seats of the New Zealand MG3,
which only comes as the single
top-spec ‘Style’ model, which
means its air con is of the climate
control variety and it fronts-up
with cruise control as standard.
Try finding that kind of kit on
any other B-segment car on the
market, never mind one priced at
under $20k.
I wasn’t expecting much boot
volume in what is a fairly
truncated design, but the car
passed the Border Terrier dog
test with flying colours, with the
ability to take 256 litres of kit
with the seats up and 546 litres to
the windowline when they’re
folded.
Possibly the most
disappointing part of the MG3 is
the absence of an automatic – a
must in New Zealand, which has
a vast majority automatic take-up
even in this size segment.
However, I’m told that by year’s
end we should have automatics
for both the MG3 and MG6, the
lack of it in the otherwise very
worthy latter car has been a
stumbling block in terms of sales.
The MG3 engine is rated at
80kW and the chassis can handle
that kind of power with ease.
There’s standard stability control
in the car, but you’re unlikely to
trouble it unless you’re really
stupid, as there’s simply not
enough oomph to get ragged
when cornering, though for all
that, the car is pleasingly flexible.
While the engine will rev to
6000rpm plus if you really want it
to, it does get a little thrashy at
those revolutions, and with the
well-sorted chassis offering so
much grip and biddability, a
better-breathing, perhaps
turbocharged version of the car
would be teriffic. Ride quality is
good too, and appears not to be
affected by the car’s sporty rims,
and those that travelled with me
in the car remarked that they
didn’t have to wince over some
road surfaces as they’d become
used to doing in their own cars.
For $19,990, the MG3 offers
incomparable value in this busy,
well-stocked segment. Some
punters might ignore the brand’s
heritage and remark that it’s
something of an unknown
quantity these days.
I hope not too many do this, as
theweeMGisalotofcarforthe
cash, and has great character.
Handled well by its distributors,
it could open the taps that could
turn into the decent flow of sales
the brand deserves.